Large Scale Central

The clandestine hobby

General Discussion
#1

the clandestine hobby

we all participate in it.
we don’t write about it.
it seems to be addictive.
it keeps the butt put.
it keeps us (me at least) away from our layouts.

i refer myself here to the hobby of reading and writing about large scale.
i think, it should be addressed as a hobby in its own right.
and not only, because there are some guys on the forums, that have no layouts.
if i read (and write) myself through the forums for largescale that interest me, on many days there is no time left for my layout.
even allthough i am regretting not to spend more of my “free” time (still working) on modelling and playing, the forums give me not only knowledge, but fun too.

before i was hooked to the internet, i spent lots more of time with my trains.
what i built was (even) less prototypical then today, but i did it.
now i suck up lots of information, how to do it better, but i do less.
sometimes i feel thinned out by this development.

… thoughts of a sleepless night. (3 am) - am i the only one, who feels that way?
or is it just because i read and write slowly?

1 Like
#2

Korm,
the internet (forums) can be time consuming if one participates in numerous fora. I post only on this site. I do, occasionally, read one of the other sites (model making), but find little of interest (often the same topic repeated across other sites) and thus frequent this forum only. My search technique leaves a lot to be desired (I always find more info on things that I do not want to know than what I want to actually find out), so I do not search very often. Of late though, I have been using Google Images to find information, although it also does bog down with useless search responses totally unrelated to the topic being searched.

#3
Korm Kormsen said:
the clandestine hobby

we all participate in it.
we don’t write about it.
it seems to be addictive.
it keeps the butt put.
it keeps us (me at least) away from our layouts.


There was a time when I was spending too much time on the computer.( Thank you Bob, for ending “Off Topic”)

Forums can and do become part of your social life. Living in a rural area…this is a good thing. I work alone and prior to joining LSC I might go days without any social interaction, other than my wife and children.

I’m on LSC in the morning while enjoying a cup of coffee.
In the afternoon and evenings it really does not impact my layout time. I’ll get online while taking a break from chores, working on the RR, or waiting for glue or paint to dry.
I can check in on the forum several times without eating up a lot of my time.

I avoid “chat”, for the most part, because it can eat up a lot of time. The one exception, being Jerry & Noel’s Live Show. I know it is limited to two hours once a week…

Having lived in 5 different States, I have a lot of “long distance” friends even prior to joining LSC. E-mail and computers save me time as I no longer spend hours on the telephone.
Ralph

#4

I take my involvement with this site much like Ralph. I catch up on what I missed yesterday and begin my day with what topics are being covered. My hobby time and the rest of my life are not majorly impacted by my internet time. I do find time I used to spend reading books has been impacted and I hope to redirect my priorities to that pursuit in the future. As my son says, “Its all good”.

#5

I cant say the internet has taken me away from my trains. If anything it helped me get back into the hobby making me spend more time with my trains. Before the internet I would have a problem with my n scale layout. I couldnt run trains until I made my next trip to the hobby store. Now I just post and within an hour I usually get my problem solved.
I mainly go on this site but once in a while I will go on MLS and GSC. I dont do much in searching unless I have something i need to look up or buy something. My biggest problem is I have too many hobbies. Like my wife tells me, my biggest decision for the day is what do i want to do? (Mt bike,hike, ski, run trains, kayake) Then their is also house work.
I find myself spending less time on the internet during the summer and more in the winter. Like Ralph I stay away from chats that can really tie up time.

#6

Thank goodness for the internet and computers .
It enables us to exchange information and research from our home , with trains and other hobbies and interest , it can save us money and headaches from buying really bad useless crap that does not perform .
Really , if you read many postings from around the world that something is bad , you are saved from so much heartache .
Remember when we depended on magazines to tell us about a product and review it …yea right ,

and as a person ages and health problems jump on you , this internet and web sites , sure help you stay interested in something .

#7

I think it has aided me a lot to be able to read others posts and correspond with folk who have done what I wanted to do-thus saving me a lot of time, so I think it balances out. I too read this in the morning, then go off the rest of the day to do things.

1 Like
#8

(http://www.lscdata.com/users/blueregal/_forumfiles/bk991518.gif)

Regal

#9

Some days it can Korm, some days…

OTOH, if you’re hiding from the ‘honeydo’ list, is that entirely a bad thing?

I think the secret is to keep it down to 3 or 4 boards, skip the stuff that is only marginally interesting, skim the rest, and limit yourself to going online once or twice a day, and no more than about 45 minutes.

Do I do that? Some days… If I’m flat broke, I’m on more.

#10

I am very dependent on my computer and still have time for the lAyout. Because I am legally blind I depend on my computer a lot.
I can make everything large enough so I can read it. I may start doing that with GR so I can read it without difficulty.
How much do we actually want to publicize our hobby? MAYBE IT’S BETTER AS A “SECRET!”

1 Like
#11

I only catch up on what is happening with large scale twice a week. Usually on Tuesday and Friday. Those are days when my wife has regular scheduled things outside our home. It is about the only time I can have access to the computer. She used to write long hand letters to all our friends but has switched to e-mail and facebook in the last three years. Only because none of our friends would write back to answer her letters. Now she does everything on the internet, shopping, reading the newspapers, searching for recipes, etc: But that gives me more time to work on my back yard and the railroad.

Big John

#12

I do this mostly from work as an intentional time-waster. There have been weekend mornings that the butt got stuck in the computer chair rather than out in the yard working. I think just because I find it hard to sleep much past 7 as I get older, my mind still thinks sane people should stay indoors until at least 10 on a weekend.

#13

7!
The dogs get me up at 5! Of course that gives me time on the computer before my wife ges up.

#14
Doug Arnold said:
7! The dogs get me up at 5! Of course that gives me time on the computer before my wife ges up.
My little ones have me up by 530am. Sunday morning I had the trains running by 640AM. My 15 month old brought his shoes to me, sat down. When he got his shoes on he walked to the wall and pointed to the trains and then wait straight for the door. Now that it stays lighter out longer I have trains running just about every day.
#15

I just like to build and sometimes documentation and sharing can be a hassle on my end but if it inspires or helps another then so be it. The puter and TV ain’t got me by the balls yet and probably never will!
If the power grid shuts down I’m sure I will build wind up diesels.
:wink:

#16

I probably spend more time than I “should” on the forums, but on the other hand, so much of what I write about in my columns is culled from what I read, so it’s a trade-off. It’s a nice way to wake up in the morning–sitting at the table eating breakfast next to the laptop while the kids eat, then unwind at night after I get home (usually around 11pm).

Personally, I’ve found the forums greatly enhance my enjoyment of the hobby, primarily for the social aspects. I’ve met people all over the globe through these forums–people with similar interests and inspiring modeling skills. Time spent on the internet has resulted in a far more rewarding experience both in the workshop and the back yard.

Later,

K

#17

(http://www.sevenforums.com/attachments/chillout-room/17951d1247552771-funny-geeky-cool-pics-funny_cat_pictures_pc_6.jpg)

Since I began downsizing my online postings have dropped significantly, mostly because I simply dont have anything much to show or talk about, but I do read the fora and will post if i have anything to contribute. But I havent posted much on my new much smaller layout as its been thru several revision tweeks over the last year and I think people get bored with such a tiny layout and lose interest, besides I’m now a niche (micro) in a niche (indoor) inside a niche (large scale) hobby and as such, way way off the mainstream. But I do check in on 4 forums, GR, MLS, GSC and of course here at LSC. But I think I’ve more active on “I Can Has Cheezburger. com” than on either of the trains forums LOL

#18

My digital camera is broken and do not have any pix to post of my indoor RR progress or my terracing outside for the soon to be incorporated Jasper Creek Mining RR.

#19
Victor Smith said:
Since I began downsizing my online postings have dropped significantly, mostly because I simply dont have anything much to show or talk about, but I do read the fora and will post if i have anything to contribute. But I havent posted much on my new much smaller layout as its been thru several revision tweeks over the last year and I think people get bored with such a tiny layout and lose interest, besides I'm now a niche (micro) in a niche (indoor) inside a niche (large scale) hobby and as such, way way off the mainstream.

But I do check in on 4 forums, GR, MLS, GSC and of course here at LSC. But I think I’ve more active on “I Can Has Cheezburger. com” than on either of the trains forums LOL


Im one person who never gets bored with your micro layout posts. You can keep them coming. Dont forget you can always doa wine barrel layout. Then you can say you have a garden RR.

#20
Victor Smith said:
way off the mainstream.
There is no mainstream in large scale ;) Show us what you're doing. The micro layouts are just as interesting as the others. Ralph